Britney does it again on singles chart

Britney Spears performs on ABC's Good Morning America in New York on December 2, 2008. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson

Oops, Britney Spears has done it again, with the U.S. pop singer cementing her comeback with a new single, 3, rocketing to No. 1 in its debut week.

Proving her popularity has not waned despite a personal and career meltdown in 2007 and 2008, 3 entered the Billboard Hot 100 chart at the top, making her the first artist with a debut No. 1 in more than three years, Billboard said on Wednesday.

The single, from her new album, The Singles Collection, due out on November 10, is the first No. 1 debut since Taylor Hicks' 2006 hit Do I Make You Proud and the first non-American Idol song to enter the chart at No. 1 in almost 11 years.

I want to thank my fans for making '3' the No. 1 song on the Billboard Hot 100, Spears, 27, said in a statement.

I am truly blessed with the greatest fans in the world and I am so happy y'all love it because I do this all for you.

Spears has sold more than 63 million albums worldwide since her debut as a teen pop phenomenon with the single ... Baby One More Time in 1998.

But in recent years she has made more headlines for her erratic behavior and struggles, including losing the custody of her two children.

She has staged a comeback, however, with her last two albums. Womanizer, released in late 2008, was her first No. 1 album in almost a decade. Her current tour to promote her most recent studio album, Circus, is her first U.S. tour since 2004.